| Whitney Houston dies at 48 | The Remembrance |

I’m not crazy about arenas just because I can sell them out. It doesn’t do anything for my ego at all. I want to play places where people don’t have to sit in the nosebleed seats and wonder what the hell is going on.Whitney Houston

(August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012)

Whitney Houston during a performance in 1991.

I wanted to take this opportunity to present to the music student population, teachers, and musicians this great international artist for which changed the world on a massive scale. For the worldwide acclaim Whitney Elizabeth Houston accounted for starting in the 1985 and tragically ending in this year of 2012 can only be measured to those of her peers. For Whitney Houston was a nations icon. Keeping within her dedicated style and knowledge base, she continued to break through her own personal issues up to her leaving of this earth. She graced us with so many wonderful songs, melodies, and memories! Her presences both on stage and off seemed to install in the fan a sense of wonder and aw of her accomplishments and grand. For the music student, take note of this time… For each generation partakes in an iconic event that can both change and shape the way you look at music. For let us not forget Whitney Houston and her recordings, and what they offered. For the teacher, what can we learn from this artist in how she presented her art to generations spanning almost three decades? We can learn that it truly is possible to present your music with a sense of class and grace. This, is something for which Whitney Houston was both dedicated and known for. For the musicians, what can we learn from her music? We can learn how, even though there is class and fluidity involved, that we can still install a sense of “real-ness” to our music. Meaning, we must not forget to keep the tone and validity of our music to the hight of organic standards. For this is also something that Whitney Houston was wonderful in doing. The “rawness” of her music was compared to something for which you might here in an blues joint downtown. Her music, yet so grand, presented itself at your everyday level.

There are so many things one can say about an artist that has passed… But one thing is true in Whitney Houston’s case: For no matter the time of her life, situations she found herself in, or current personal struggles – her music kept the quality of naturalness. Time and time again, for nearly a 30 year career, you always heard a naturalness in her music that made you believe that the song was for you. This, is what will make Whitney Houston and her music continuously vigilant many many years after her leaving of us.

When asked why I play wedding music, I always answer: "Some want to make money, some want to make a name for themselves. I want to create the best experience possible for those that love music as much as I do!"